Reflections
Loving Yourself
By Hugh Farquhar The Gospel Reading prescribed in the Lectionary for next Sunday is Matthew 22:34-40. It contains some of Jesus’ most memorable words, including: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Whitney Houston had a big hit that stayed on the charts for...
Just Enough of God
by Hugh Farquhar The Revised Common Lectionary Reading from the Hebrew Scripture on Sunday is Exodus 33:12-23. The concluding verse is striking: “You shall see my back, but my face shall not be seen.” Years ago, when the older two of our four children were small, we...
“Now is the Time” Advent Small Group Study
Now is the Time: A Resource for Small Group Study or for Individual Study "Imagine if COVID regulations were in place when Mary came to visit Elizabeth. She's ring the doorbell and then stand back two metres. There would be no hug." The 2020 Advent Small...
Bearing Fruit
Bearing Fruit by Carolyn Crowell, To Touch the Mystery: Poetry for the Journey of Life. Carolyn is an educator, minister, theologian and writer in The United Church of Canada. She writes poems that reflect the presence of the Spirit in everyday life. Learn more and...
Queen Anne’s Lace – Stroll for Your Soul
Each spring Prayer Bench in Canada and Kereru Publishing in New Zealand offer a program called Stroll for Your Soul. Stroll offers 21 days of accompaniment through a brief email delivered early each morning to your inbox. Each email will offer a practice, or a...
Sunflowers: Pronouncing a Blessing
Sunflowers: Pronouncing a Blessing Read Psalm 113 “From the rising of the sun to its setting the name of...
Soul Songs: Psalm 118
LENT SOUL SONG VISUAL PRAYER Psalm 118 Set Your Face Toward the Riot And on this path the gates are opening wide — Psalm 118 Read Psalm 118: 1,2 -19-29 What parts of this Psalm speak to you? Inspire, resonate or call to you? What feelings, longings, hopes are evoked...
Soul Songs: Psalm 130
LENT SOUL SONG VISUAL PRAYER Psalm 130 Tending the Grief "My whole being waits for you, my God, listening for your Presence.” -- Psalm 130:4 Read Psalm 130 What feelings, longings, hopes are evoked in you as you pray this Psalm? When life is hard and you are hurting,...
Soul Songs: Psalm 23
LENT SOUL SONG VISUAL PRAYER Psalm 23 Hospitality "Anoint my head, and fill my cup to overflowing." - Psalm 23 Read Psalm 23 What parts of this Psalm speak to you? Inspire, resonate or call to you? What feelings, longings, hopes are evoked in you as you pray this...
Pam & Tilley Day 1
Pam Harrison, a friend of the Prayer Bench, is spending the winter in Olhos da Agua, Portugal. She wonders how she will live in an area of the world that is the hub of coronavirus. "As of yesterday things sure changed!! The news and social media are so scary but the...
Soul Songs: Psalm 95
LENT SOUL SONG VISUAL PRAYER Psalm 95 Holding in Care "God holds in care the earth we walk upon, from its deep caverns, to mountain summits which meet the sky." -Psalm 95 Read Psalm 95 What parts of this Psalm speak to you? Inspire, resonate or call to you in days...
Soul Songs: Psalm 121
LENT SOUL SONG VISUAL PRAYER Psalm 121 Present to Life as it is. “I walk into your wakefulness… And in the shadows … you preserve me from its evils.” - Psalm 121 Read Psalm 121 What parts of this Psalm speak to you? Inspire, resonate or call to you? What feelings,...
Soul Song: Psalm 32
LENT SOUL SONG VISUAL PRAYER Psalm 32 Speaking the Truth of the Heart. “How blessed are those who live before their God without the weight of guilt … I spoke …. Uncovering it all.” Ps. 32 Read Psalm 32 What parts of this Psalm speak to you?...
Inside Prayer
Inside Prayer “Jesus took with him Peter and James and John, and went up the mountain to pray.” I was fortunate to visit the place where, by tradition, this story may have taken place, Mount Tabor in Galilee. We didn’t walk up the mountain. We drove. As we wound our...
“How Then Shall I Live” Free Email Retreat
Here is your free retreat: (click on retreat title to download and print) How Then Shall We Live What best supports our journey of becoming? What contemplative practices help us live the life we want to be living? What are some ways we move deeper into our heart and...
2020 Subscription Packages
Is this you? Seeking to deepen your life through spiritual practice rooted in Christian Wisdom? Yearning for invitations to solitude and silence, to see beauty all...
A Gentle Stirring of Life & Hope
A Gentle Stirring of Life and Hope I’m haunted by this image. Before you read more about it, take the time to explore the entire image with your eyes: Notice the shapes, the different figures and symbols.... See if there is any part of the image that asks for your...
Starlight Stories for Advent 2019
You’ll meet John’s childhood friend, Mary’s mother Anna, Joseph who is ready to flee, a shepherd who holds her post, and even a story from the Star herself. The stories are wonderful. Each one brings richness and depth to the human spiritual journey in the...
